A report by the Environmental Change Institute at Oxford University shows the UK has the best wind resource in Europe. The report, commissioned by the Department of Trade and Industry, analysed hourly wind speeds collected by the Met Office at 66 locations across the UK since 1970, making it the most extensive research of the UK’s wind resource to date.
The British Wind Energy Association’s head of Grid & Technical Affairs, Richard Ford, welcomed the publication: “This report confirms what the industry has long known about the quality of the UK’s wind resource. Our colleagues in Europe are perplexed that given this abundant natural resource – a strategic energy source as important as North Sea oil – this country has been slow to install turbines to harness the power of the wind.
“With this evidence, there should now be no doubt at all about wind’s ability to play a reliable role in the new power portfolio and fulfil its promise to generate significant amounts of carbon-free electricity for the UK. The UK is starting to catch up with our EU partners, who have been enjoying the benefits of this clean energy source for many years now, including thousands of jobs and increased energy security, despite not having this quality of wind.”
The report reveals that wind tends to blow stronger when demand is highest, during the day and winter months. Furthermore, the chance of low wind speeds affecting 90% of the country only occur for one hour every five years, while the chance of wind turbines shutting down due to high wind speeds only occurs in around one hour in every 10. Other findings concluded that the wind conditions in the UK are significantly stronger than those in Denmark and Germany.
